Oil heater for automotive engines



April 27, 1954 M. BYRON OIL. HEATER FOR AUTOMOTIVE ENGINES Filed Feb. 21, 1952 F! G, I.

INVENTOR MICHAEL BYRON ATTORNEYS Patented Apr. 27, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE OIL HEATER FOR AUTOMOTIVE ENGINES Michael Byron, Cincinnati, Ohio I Application February 21, 1952, Serial No. 272,821

' 1 Claim. (01, 219-38) tric current from house wiring systems and includes means for connecting it to and disconnecting it from a house wiring system; which includes asupporting receptacle which may be permanently mounted on an engine oil pan and a heating plate removably mounted in the receptacle;

which can be mounted on the engine oil pan of an existing automotive vehicle with no material modification of the oil pan construction and without interference with the operation of the associated vehicle; and which is simple and durable in construction, economical to manufacture, and positive and effective in operation.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from a consideration of the following description and the appended claim in conjunction with the accompanying drawing wherein:

Figur 1 is a side elevational view of an automotive vehicle with parts broken away and shown in cross section to show the engine and engine oil pan with an electric heater illustrative of the invention operatively mounted on the engine oil p Figure 2 is a top plan view of the engine oil heater;

Figure 3 is a longitudinal cross sectional view on the line 33 of Figure 2; and

Figure 4 is a transverse cross sectional view on the line 44 of Figure 3.

With continued reference to the drawing, the numeral to generally indicates an automotive vehicle, such as an automobile, having an internal combustion engine ll disposed in the front portion of the vehicle and provided at the bottom of its crankcase 12 with an oil pan l3 having a substantially flat bottom portion M.

An engine oil heater is generally indicated at 15 and includes a sheet metal receptacle N of rectangular shape having an open top and one open end. This receptacle has a bottom wall l1, one end wall I8, and side walls 19 and 20, and has a width and length somewhat less than the width and length of the fiat bottom portion M of the engine oil pan.

outwardly extending apertured lugs 2| are provided on the side and end walls of the receptacle 2 5 at the open upper side of the receptacle and i project outwardly from the upper edges ofthe corresponding end and side walls at spaced apart oil pan l3 to rigidly secure the receptacle [5 to the oil pan at the outer side of the latter; I

A heating plate, generally indicated at 25, is disposed in the receptacle [5 and comprises a body 26 of electrically insulative and heat resistant material, such as a ceramic material, and

electrical resistance heating elements 2'! and 28 mounted in the body 26.

In the arrangement illustrated, the body is provided in on side thereof with spaced apart grooves of spiral shape and the heating elements 2'! and 28 are in the form of wire coils disposed one in each of the spiral grooves in the plate body 26. The ends, side and face of the body 26 remote from the grooved side or face thereof are enclosed in a casing 29, preferably formed of a suitable sheet material to reinforce the body 26 and protect the latter against accidental damage.

Au outlet socket 311 is mounted on th engine of the vehicle in fixed relationship to the oil pan l3 and is adapted to receive a plug at one end of an extension cord, the other end of which is connected to a house wiring system. Conductors 3| and 32 electrically connect the socket 30 to the heating elements 21 and 28 and a closure plate 33 is disposed in covering relationship to the open end of the receptacle [5 and has outwardly projecting, apertured lugs 34 spaced apart along one edge thereof which receive screw fasteners 35 which secure the closure plate to the oil pan l3 in closing relationship to the open end of the receptacle l5. The closure plate 33 is provided with an aperture through which the conductors 3| and 32 extend and a grommet 35' of electrically insulative and heat resistant material is disposed in the aperture in the closure plate surrounding the conductors to protect the latter against frictional wear.

With the receptacle l 5 installed on the oil pan and the closure plate 33 removed, the heating plate 25 may be installed by sliding it into the receptacle from the open end of the latter and the heating plate may be removed by first removing the closure plate 33 and then pulling the plate out through the open end of the receptacle.

Where the oil drain plug 36 of the oil pan comes within the area of the receptacle [5, the plate 26 is provided with an aperture 31 in registery with th drain plug and the bottom wall I1 of the receptacle I5 is provided with an aperture 38 in registry with the aperture 37, so that the drain plug can be removed without the necessity of removing the heater from the oil pan and the used engine oil can be drained from the oil pan through the heater.

The arrangement as illustrated in Figure 1 also includes a storage battery 40 carried by the vehicle l0 and a manually operated switch 4| mounted on the instrument board 42 of the vehicle. A conductor d3 connects one side of the battery 40 to one side of the switch M and a conductor 44 connects the other side of the switch to one side of the receptacle and to the conductor 3|, A conductor 45 or a suitable ground connection connects the other side of the receptacle and the conductor 32 to the other side of the battery, so that the heating elements can be heated by battery current when the switch 4| is closed. This switch is preferably of a known form having a high, a medium, a low and an off position and may be connected into the circuit between the battery and the heating elements in a well known manner.

The invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. Th present embodiment is, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the

scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claim rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claim are, therefore, intended to be embraced 2".

therein.

What is claimed is:

In combination with an engine oil pan having a substantially fiat bottom portion, an oil heater comprising a receptacle of rectangular shape mounted on the outside of the flat bottom portion of said oil pan and having an open side adjacent said oil pan and one open end, a heating plate disposed in said receptacle and including a body of substantially rigid electrically insulative and heat resistant material 01 rectangular shape and an electrical resistance heating element mounted in said body, closure means detachably secured to said oil pan and closing the open end of said receptacle, an outlet socket rigidly supported relative to said oil pan, and electrical conductors extending through said closure means and connecting said heating element to said socket, said heating plate being movable into and out of said receptacle through the open end of the latter when said closure means is removed from said oil pan.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Bushnell Apr. 23, 1935 

